Inventionem Amor
by Bullet2tm
Summary: AU. Lydia had traveled the world, alone. Being a vampire, she didn't want the betrayal of having people around her that she cared about. The McCall pack have sought her out for answers of their own. She finds out that her once best friend, whom she dreams constantly about, is missing and that Stiles has a rage that is similar to her own andfeelings for her that shewished he wouldnt


**A/N: **_First story in this category. Inspired by a Tumblr gif showing Stiles and Lydia in the Japanese courtyard in the snow when the Nogitsune tricked them when they were holding each other for support. They said that they were vampires an that Lydia was whispering orders into his ear and he was going to carry it out. However, I've sort of twisted it a bit and have now made it into a story. I can't remember the owner of the Gif, otherwise I would be thanking them but anyway, enjoy. Please read and review and let me know what you think. Also, the title means "Finding Love". Peace,  
_

_Bullet2tm_

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**Inventionem Amor**

**Part I**

She ran swiftly around the corner, blood running down her arm all the way to her delicate hand. She stopped at the corner, her hand grasping the wall as she turned to see if her attacker was still following her. She was barefoot, her heels long forgotten, but it still didn't help that her wounds weren't healing quickly enough.

She was bruised and battered but she clung onto her life for so long as she could breath because that's the type of person she was. She couldn't hear anything, not a sound. And that scared her even more.

And her kind wasn't _scared_ easily. Blood smeared onto the wall as she moved her hand away and that was when she realised her situation.

For so long, she had been a predator. A strong, independent killer. Until they came.

She had been running for a while now. Probably two or three years, she wasn't sure. It was always someone different, but they always found her. And then she'd met _him_ tonight and her guard was down.

Vampires were generally loners, not needing to be in a group or pack as some people called it - if you were close and protected each other. But Lydia Martin had never needed a pack or a group because she'd survived for over five hundred years on her own. She'd traveled the world having as much fun as one could by having one night liaisons and even short relationships when she felt the need to have someone in her life, albeit short and sweet. But she had someone different all the time.

However, she'd left a trail. One that the hunters could track. And it was in this time she'd realised that maybe she'd made a mistake by alienating herself from the vampire world.

Suddenly her enhanced vampire hearing picked up a cocking of a shotgun and the stringing of a bow and she knew they weren't far behind.

Lydia instantly stopped her nostalgia and ran. Her figure disappeared. To the human eye, she wasn't even there for she was running using her enhanced vampire speed. But the hunters in this era were smarter and their technology was more advanced.

Somehow they had integrated technology with the knowledge of vampire abilities and worked it into goggles which could allow them to see vampires while they used this ability.

Lyda turned a corner, thinking she could outrun them. But they'd been watching her tonight, knowing that she would use a back entrance to the club she'd ventured in. They were ten steps ahead.

She was stopped in her tracks with an electric trap. They'd set it up beforehand and she'd run right into it.

Lydia screamed in pain and fell to the ground, hard. A figure walked up behind her and pulled out handgun, trained on her heart.

"Been following you since Detroit. And sweetheart, you were hard to catch. You're smart, I'll give you that. Too bad you swoon so easily at some man candy," said a woman's voice.

Lydia recovered from the electricity burns, her skin already healing. Her previous wounds also had healed but a shot to the heart would kill her. Her green orbs stared at the gun, not knowing if it would go off now or not. She watched as the woman's trigger finger began to squeeze.

Five hundred years, she'd lived. _Five hundred_ bloody years and this is how it was going to end.

A shot echoed around the alleyway but luckily it only hit her in he shoulder. She moaned slightly from the pain and grabbed the wound. It was a through and through, so she knew she would be okay.

Lydia looked up to see the man she'd been chatting up standing above her with a hand held out. She looked around her to see the woman lying in a pool of blood with her neck broken. The electric rods were destroyed and lying lifelessly near a trash can.

She looked up into his brown orbs and took his hand cautiously.

"Stiles?" she managed to choke out.

He smiled as he pulled her up effortlessly with a bit more force than necessary as she came crashing into his chest. She pulled back slightly but held her in place, almost hugging her. He placed his hands either side her arms and pushed her away a little so he could look down into her eyes, almost with concern, despite the fact that he'd just met her.

She frowned. "Thank you," she said as she leaned up and kissed him softly on the lips. It was a peck, really, but she was so thankful for her life. Plus, she'd felt attracted to him in the club too.

He seemed to look surprised but accepted the kiss nonetheless.

"Y-you're a vampire," she stated finally after leaning back out of his grasp.

Stiles nodded. "Yes."

Finally she took in his appearance, noticing how expensive looking his suit was but how he had now discarded his tie. The left arm of his suit was hanging from the stitching as it appeared he had been in a fight before he got here and so she could see the beginnings of what appeared to be some kind of tattoo. One she recognised.

Her eyes widened as they reached Stiles' once more.

"You're part of the pack...McCall's pack. THE pack," she said in surprise.

Stiles sighed and nodded. "Yes. I thought you knew..."

"No! I didn't know that, otherwise I would have stayed clear of you," she said, almost bitterly.

Stiles frowned in confusion. "Why?"

Lydia shook her head. "It doesn't matter. Thank you for saving me, Stiles. But it was _your_ fault I was in this mess to begin with, so, I'll see you around," she said before turning around and disappeared, using her vampire speed to run toward the street so she could catch cab.

Before she was able to get to the end though, Stiles appeared in front of her.

"Excuse me?!" he exclaimed, clearly annoyed by her firstly accusing him and then leaving. "I saved you, if you didn't notice, _Ariel_."

Lydia's eyes widened. "Don't call me that! And if it weren't for you, I would have noticed that crazy hunter following me-"

"Not true, you're pretty dense. Too busy trying to flirt with me rather than worrying about a hunter," snapped Stiles, almost regretting saving her.

But it wasn't true. He'd do it all over again and if he hadn't lost sight of her in the club, he would have beat the shit out of the hunters before they laid a hand on her.

When he saw her in the club, her shiny strawberry locks flowing around her as she danced freely in her black mini-dress, uncaring of her surroundings, his only thought was how anyone could be so beautiful, so incredibly intoxicating that he couldn't look away.

But she was fiery and argumentative it seemed. Traits that were grating on his nerves.

"I'll have you know I checked that I wasn't followed. She obviously caught up with me and entered the club while you were talking to me. And FYI, _you_ were flirting with _me_!" she said as he folded her arms over her chest defiantly.

Stiles clenched a fist in front of him and scrunched up his lips; holding back an insult.

"Look, Lydia, you didn't just meet me by chance-"

"I know. You want my talents. You're not the first pack to approach me."

"Then you know how important it is now that you choose one. You have to choose us, Lydia. We're your only choice," he said calmly, trying to convince her. "Scott's a great guy. We protect each other and that's rare in a vampire pack."

Lydia mulled over what he was saying.

"You know its true. What if I hadn't been here tonight?"

Lydia pursed her lips in thought. "I'd be dead. I'm over five hundred years old Stiles, I've had a full life-"

"And you know that you didn't want to die, so how about you stop being in denial and move on!"

"Stop acting like you know me. You don't. There's a reason I'm not in a pack. I have the gift but its actually a curse. The gift of predicting death, seeing death in my dreams and screaming every now and then when it gets too intense is _not_ something you want in your pack. I can't control it," explained Lydia, not really knowing why she kept opening up to this stranger whom she'd met probably an hour ago.

"Plus, you can't trust people or vampires. You're useless to me," she said coldly. She'd always been cold and cut off from people, simply because she'd been betrayed more times than she could count.

Stiles smirked which is not the reaction she expected.

"You can trust me. _Us_. We're different. You've heard the stories, surely. They call us soft, emotional. But we're the ones still standing and we're the most powerful pack around."

Lydia's lips formed a thin line because she knew it was true. What would it hurt to at least meet them and see if the rumours were true?

"How do you know about me? How did you know I was here?"

"We saw your body count in Detroit. What happened Lydia?"

Lydia looked away in shame. She had a weakness. When she was angry, she got even and that always ended in bloodshed. "It doesn't matter."

OOO-OOO

And so she found herself being driven to his den for the night. It seemed that the pack didn't always stay together. Stiles had explained that first thing after they'd slept in the morning that they'd go and see the pack tomorrow when they awoke.

It was 4am, almost time for them to go to bed when the sun rose.

Vampires were on night shift time. They had to sleep during the day and get up at nightfall.

"Don't think this means that I'll join your pack," snapped Lydia as she got out of the cab and walked toward the door to what seemed like an apartment building. "I thought your pack had money."

She looked around to see Stiles walking toward her after paying the cab driver. He was putting his wallet away as he responded. "Yeah we do, but I like this apartment. I like living here, its quiet and I don't get attention drawn on me."

Lydia raised an eyebrow as he pulled out a key to open the door to the apartment building.

"I see," she said skeptically. "Oh and look, you share your space with at least twenty other people."

"No need to be condescending. You know that mouth will get you in trouble, if it hasn't already," he said pointedly, referring to Detroit.

Lydia didn't respond.

Finally they reached a simple door on the second floor. It was decrepit really.

He unlocked it and she walked in observing every little detail. It was very neat. Small, but tidy. He had a common lounge room with the kitchen on the right as you entered. It as open plan with a bedroom further to the left. He had a couch and a few small windows facing the street.

She turned around to find Stiles staring at her. She caught him doing that a lot and he always held a strange expression on his face; one that she couldn't work out. He'd done it in the cab and in the club and now he was doing it again.

"What?" she asked, knowing that he wouldn't tell her.

Stiles shook his head and pointed to the bedroom. "You can have the bed."

"Thanks," she muttered, still slightly annoyed at the fact that one, he'd been tracking her and didn't tell her that from the start and two, he wouldn't tell her why they needed her in their pack.

The Scott McCall pack was renown throughout the country for being the strongest, yet, closest pack in the whole country. There were stories that Scott McCall was one of the youngest but strongest vampires in the world and that he only accepted the strongest vampires into his fold.

She certainly wouldn't need to worry about hunters if she joined them, bu would she be happy? She was a free spirit and enjoyed being alone because you could only rely on yourself. You couldn't betray yourself and no one could betray you.

Because vampires were killers; betrayal and selfishness was in their nature.

OOO-OOO

Lydia awoke. It was dark but mainly because Stiles had blinds which were now closed. She lifted the covers off herself and turned so that her slender legs dangled off the side of Stiles' large king sized bed.

She noted that his black sheets were good quality and typical of a vampire to have.

Lydia got up and took off the t-shirt that Stiles had leant her for the night so that she was in her underwear. She picked up the dress she had been wearing the previous night and slipped it on again, carefully zipping it up so as not to wake Stiles whom had taken the couch in the next room.

She didn't have a handbag to worry about as she never needed to pay for anything or use ID since she had compulsion, due to her vampirism.

Lydia tip toed into the lounge room and looked over at Stiles whom was breathing evenly. He was asleep. She pursed her lips.

No, she didn't need a pack. It would only lead to disaster and what if she came to care about them? She couldn't do that again. So she turned toward the door and walked slowly toward it.

She reached the handle and began to turn it. She opened the door slowly and turned once more to check that Stiles was asleep to find he wasn't on the couch anymore.

Lydia frowned and turned to her left to see Stiles towering over her. He used his hand to shut the door with a slam. If she hadn't been a vampire, she would have flinched, but she didn't because she was stronger than that.

"Going somewhere, Ariel?" he snapped angrily as he moved closer toward her.

She backed away from him. "I-"

"You what?" he drawled, the anger clearly evident in his tone. He kept walking toward her slowly to which she evenly backed away until her back met the kitchen bench.

But he kept going.

"I can't-"

"Can't what? Can't handle it?" he asked in annoyance, his eyes narrowed.

She didn't know Stiles, maybe his anger pushed him over the edge too, like it did, her.

"Why should I go? I don't need a pack and I don't need you!" she exclaimed suddenly, the annoyance in her was a surprise since she was slightly scared of what Stiles was going to do.

He took another barefoot step forward and grabbed her arms tightly, looking down into her eyes. She could practically feel the anger wash over her from him and could tell he was trying to control it.

"You don't know what you need, seriously, you _don't_," he snapped. His grip tightened to the point where she thought he was going to break her arms.

"Let _go_ of me, you don't want to see me angry-"

"Oh Ariel, I'm _already_ angry," he said, almost a bit too calm. He looked into her eyes and then his gaze lowered to her lips.

Before she knew it his lips were on hers as they angrily kissed. If she was truthful with herself, it was the most passionate kiss she'd ever had. She gave into the kiss, despite herself hating that he was doing this. She barely knew him! Although, she'd kissed men within hours of meeting them before, but his wasn't a liaison. Not by a long shot.

A surprisingly toned arm wrapped around her back and pulled her even closer to his body and another hand met the back of her head and then moved to her neck and then her cheek.

Just as he deepened the kiss and his tongue moved in to take hers, she backed away. Because she'd felt something below his belt and she was pretty sure it wasn't a torch.

She refused to sleep with Stiles, she knew nothing about him and it would just ensure that she joined his pack. But other than those things, she really just couldn't do it. Lydia didn't know why, but she just couldn't sleep with him within the first day of meeting him.

He looked down at her in shock and he brought his fingers up to his lips, realising how long they'd been kissing since their lip were slightly swollen. It was so unlike him. He never kissed a girl like this and never this soon of meeting them.

But his anger at realising she was going to get away without even meeting his pack got him angry and anger was his curse. He'd massacred people in his anger and looked down at his destruction once the anger passed and he _always_ regretted it.

However this time, deep down, he knew he didn't regret what he just did and that scared him a little.

"If I go," said Lydia quietly, looking anywhere but into Stiles' eyes. "If I go meet your pack, promise me you'll never do that again."

Stiles frowned but nodded. He didn't want to nod, though because he didn't know if he could really keep that promise. But once he got home - back to the pack - it would be different. So yes, he would have to keep his promise.

OOO-OOO

It was a long drive. She didn't know why she agreed to come this far, to a place called Beacon Hills. Why would a pack this powerful reside in a small town in the middle of nowhere?

She got out of the car when they stopped outside a large house in what she could only describe as Beacon Hills' countryside.

Lydia followed Stiles up to the door. He shouted "Honey, I'm home!"

She thought that it was an in-house joke but when a young woman appeared, beautiful and leggy with long brown hair, and rushed over and hugged Stiles around his torso, she realised what a mistake she'd made.

The girl's back was facing her and so Stiles gazed over at Lydia with a look of what she thought was remorse or regret, but mistakenly, it was actually apologetic.

And so she put two and two together. Stiles used her by kissing her, by getting her familiar with him so that she would join his pack. She shook her head as she narrowed her eyes at Stiles. To her, he was the lowest form of man right now.

Suddenly a few more people appeared from nowhere. Two men stood at the bottom of the stairs and stared at Lydia, trying to study her. But before they greeted her, they walked over to Stiles and welcomed him back.

One man stood further back but stared at Lydia with the same look that Stiles had the night he met her. What was with that?

Then another came forward and walked toward her, his eyes glowed red so she knew it had to be the pack's leader. Scott McCall.

"Lydia, you made it," smiled Scott. "I'm Scott McCall."

She smiled and nodded. "This is Malia, Stiles' girlfriend," explained Scott as he pointed toward the girl whom was holding hands Stiles. She half smiled at Lydia but there was something in her eyes that Lydia didn't trust and Malia was in the same mind.

"And Jordan," said Scott whom nodded to someone else next to him.

The man whom stared at her quite intently. He smiled and nodded. "Nice to meet you, Lydia."

Lydia sighed. "Look, I know that you want me for something, the only question is what."

Scott frowned and glared at Stiles whom shrugged. He hadn't told her anything.

He turned back to Lydia.

"Look, I know you can't be more than 250 years old. Stiles has to be around the same if not younger - his _experience_ says it all," she said, taking a dig at him for his betrayal. Yet another betrayal to add to the list. She was referring to his experience in the bedroom, but to everyone else, it sounded like his combat experience.

Jordan laughed and Scott smiled. "But Jordan, he would have to be at least three hundred and fifty years old," she continued.

He smirked. "Almost all right, except I'm nearly four hundred," he said with a playful smile and winked at her.

Stiles watched on, his girlfriend's hand in his. He squeezed her hand tightly...too tight as he watched Jordan openly flirt with Lydia. He didn't like it, not one bit. Malia removed her hand and glared at Stiles in confusion, but he wouldn't look away from Lydia. Not for a second. Malia could see his jaw was constricted, like how it was when he was angry or annoyed.

Lydia smiled at Jordan but then looked up at Scott.

"I know I'm not the oldest here but I'm not their leader because I killed my way to the top nor hurt anyone to get here. I'm not here because I want power, I simply want to protect my family. We aren't a pack, not really. A pack is more of a werewolf term that has been adopted for vampires for this reason. We are family, Lydia, and I want you to become part of our family too. I know you need it and we need you," said Scott, trying to get her to understand what they were.

"I'm over five hundred years old, Scott. I know what you want because everyone seems to want a Vampire Banshee in their fold to create dominance. I've had a long time to control my abilities but there are still things I can't control-"

"Yeah we know, we've seen what you can't control, _Ariel_," said Stiles, albeit, a little too harshly.

Lydia's eyes widened as he stared at Stiles. She walked over to him with tears in her eyes.

"I know who you're searching for because I see her in my dreams. Allison Argent," she said, the tears threatening to fall. "We were best friends in New York."

The others gasped slightly at the news. How could she have known her? How could they have not known this?

"I'm old, I used compulsion to make her forget, even though she was a vampire. Its a banshee thing I guess," she explained as she turned to look at Scott for a moment before her gaze went back to Stiles who was judging her the hardest.

"You think you know everything, don't you Stiles? But you don't get it, I was in Detroit following a lead. I dream about Allison, I feel Allison sometimes. It lead me to Detroit."

Scott's eyes widened. "And what did you find?"

Lydia turned as the tears fell down her cheeks. "She was the only friend I'd truly ever had so when I found what was there...maybe I lost my mind a little. But living for as long as I have, it was bound to happen."

"Is she-"

"No, I didn't find her," was her only response.

She looked up at Stiles with a coldness she hadn't felt in a long time. "I'll join your pack. But not for _him_," she said looking at Stiles and then walked away from him.

Scott looked down at Lydia, remorse filling his heart. He hadn't meant to bring up something that hurt his newest member, but she was their only hope. They needed to know what happened to Allison, even if it meant finding out she was gone forever.

There was something about Lydia that bothered him. It was her demeanor. The way she smiled but she wasn't really smiling - like she had a sorrow that would never leave her.

He felt sorry for her and then promised himself that he would protect her no matter what. She was part of the pack now. He walked on and found Jordan talking to Lydia; showing her to where she would be staying.

Scott looked behind him at Malia storming off from Stiles and then he walked over to him.

"What was that about, dude?" asked Scott, clearly confused as to why Lydia disliked Stiles.

It was Stiles after all. The jokester of the family, the fun loving guy who tried to keep peoples hopes up. Not a great combat fighter, but he was a good guy nonetheless.

Stiles rubbed a hand on the back of his messy short brown hair and sheepishly looked up at Scott who didn't really seem amused.

"I...kissed her?" he said finally.

Scott raised an eye brow as his mouth opened slightly in shock.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah seriously. Look, dude, I'm sorry okay? I just...she made me so angry, she has a mouth on her I'll tell ya that. But she tried to leave and my anger just got out of check and I...I just kissed her," said Stiles, feeling good to get the confession off his chest.

Scott sighed. "I'm guessing that's why Malia just stormed off?"

Stiles shrugged. "She said she could smell Lydia all over me."

Scott nodded and shook his head. "Dude, that's why she sort of hates you. She thinks you used her to get her here."

Stiles knew that's what she thought, but it wasn't true. Not at all. He'd just lost his mind a bit, maybe. No,_ Lydia_ made him lose his mind. That girl was trouble, not for the group, but for him.

"I know. But she's here, isn't she? And she's part of the pack now," said Stiles as he put his hands in his jean pockets in frustration, almost.

Scott nodded. "Yeah, but at what cost? Something happened in Detroit and we have to find out what set her off. And how did she know Allison?"

Stiles nodded. "I know. Lots of questions, but they'll get answered soon once she opens up to us," said Stiles.

Scott shrugged. "Yeah, just not to you," he laughed.


End file.
